If I had a nickel for every time our state legislators did something stupid or destructive, I'd be in Donald Trump's Cabinet.

So I guess I shouldn't have been flabbergasted to learn that the state House last week threw a very late monkey-wrench in the attempt to let Pennsylvania finally become Real ID compliant and spare the state's air travelers some major headaches.

Senate Bill 133 would have cleanly rescinded state Act 38, passed in 2012, which forbade compliance with federal rules governing driver's license security and other areas to protect against terrorists and other forms of identity theft. This would have set the stage for PennDOT to begin negotiating needed changes with Homeland Security and become fully compliant with the federal Real ID Act, which resulted from recommendations by the 9/11 Commission after the Sept. 11 attacks.

The alternative is returning to the shrinking list of states that refuse to comply with the requirements for enhanced driver's license security, ensuring that Pennsylvania driver's licenses no longer will be sufficient identification to get onto commercial flights as of next Jan. 22.

After watching a Senate committee hearing on the subject earlier this year and reading a letter signed by party leaders of both houses, along with Gov. Tom Wolf, assuring Homeland Security that Act 38 would be rescinded in this legislative session, I was confident SB 133's passage was a foregone conclusion. When it passed 46-2 in the Senate with overwhelming bipartisan support, this seemed to be even more certain.

It turns out my confidence was misplaced. The House, led by Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-Butler, amended that bill to, among other things, create a two-tiered system of driver's licenses in which residents will have to opt in to receiving what it's calling a "voluntary travel ID" and pay extra for the privilege.

Brian Zimmer, president of the advocacy group Keeping IDentities Safe, which has been working for Real ID compliance in Pennsylvania and elsewhere, said some other states have two-tiered systems. But where they require residents to opt in rather than opt out, the level of participation has been only 20-30 percent, with some of those remaining residents later finding themselves scrambling for Real ID compliant identification that they didn't realize they needed. It tends to create confusion.

He said a system allowing people to opt out if they choose is more effective. He also said it's not at all common to have an opt-in system that requires people who choose Real ID compliant licenses to pay extra, which almost certainly would further reduce participation.

The other flaw there is the idea that all residents, whether they choose to travel by air or not, won't benefit from a more secure system of issuing driver's licenses.

"It's a fiction," Zimmer said, "because everyone benefits from the big investments you have to make to comply with Real ID."

And creating a two-tier system will make it more expensive, another argument for a cleaner approach.

There was some confusion about another provision of the amended bill, which says, under Source of Funding:

"The Department [of Transportation] may use funding provided by the federal government for implementation of the Real ID Act of 2005."

As I understand it, this is not a call for the federal government to pony up whatever it will cost to upgrade Pennsylvania's driver's license security, although I'm sure legislators would like to get more federal help for meeting the federal mandate.

Rather, I've been told, it's alluding to $5 million that PennDOT already has received in federal grant money specifically designed to help states comply with the Real ID Act.

The amended bill hasn't technically passed the House yet, but since House members voted last week, largely on party lines, to reject reverting to the original bill, it's a foregone conclusion. The amended bill is expected to receive final approval when the House reconvenes the week of May 21.

The question at that point will be whether the Senate decides to concur with the changes or refuses, returning the bill to a conference committee that would have to iron out the disagreements. The clock is ticking, since Homeland Security's extension for Pennsylvania to demonstrate its willingness to become Real ID compliant expires June 6.

If Gov. Wolf is presented with a bill along the lines the House Republicans prefer, he'll have to decide whether to sign it, again under the June 6 gun.

As for whether Homeland Security will accept the proposed approach, Zimmer thinks it's better than 50-50 that it will grant a further extension until it can negotiate any necessary changes. So this twist may not turn out to be disastrous.

PennDOT has estimated it would take about 18 months for it to reach full compliance once it gets the go-ahead from the Legislature, which is why we're talking about Homeland Security extensions, not final declarations of compliance.

Among the House Democrats who were angry about the insistence on amending SB 133 was Rep. Mike Schlossberg, D-Lehigh, who told me, "The first time a family is turned away, people will chase us with pitchforks, and they'll have every right to."

The House Republicans who opted for this amendment included the entire Lehigh Valley House Republican delegation, except Zach Mako, who wasn't there.

By all means, take the opportunity to congratulate them, with or without pitchforks, for continuing to play chicken with the Department of Homeland Security and the travel plans of Pennsylvania residents.